David O’Sullivan, chief optometric advisor to the Welsh government, described receiving an OBE for services to eye care in the New Year Honours List as a pleasant surprise.
He told Optician: ‘I have been very lucky in my career as an optometrist and an optometric adviser to have worked in Wales.’
O’Sullivan was appointed as the first local optometric adviser in Wales over 20 years ago on what was then the Carmarthenshire Local Health Group, which later became Hywel Dda Local Health Board, and he later built on these relationships in the same role for Cardiff and the Vale.
‘To be recognised for the part that I have played over the past 20 years is a privilege, but also a testament to the forward thinking and progressive nature of eye care services in Wales,’ O’Sullivan said.
O’Sullivan added that 2023 was an important year for optometry in Wales but it was a step in a journey to fully realising the clinical skills of optometrists and dispensing opticians.
‘Key to transforming eye health pathways in Wales has been in creating a cultural change within optometry and eye health, working collaboratively across all professions and stakeholders.
‘My role as a health professional adviser to the Welsh Government has been to highlight the skills of the profession and promote how best these can be used to improve eye health outcomes for patients in Wales. I will endeavour to continue to further develop eye care policies, working with progressive policy officials and government ministers in Wales,’ he said.
Looking ahead, O’Sullivan noted the move to a fully clinically based system was the start of reform and integration of the whole eye care pathway. ‘A seamless system with a flow of patients between optometry and ophthalmology is essential to prevent avoidable sight loss.
'This is a journey that is embraced in Wales, and the next 12 months will be vital in integrating and reforming the entire eye care pathway for improved patient outcomes,’ he said.
